Top Free Things To Do In Ohio

Free art in Ohio

Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo (pictured) With more than 30,000 significant works, including Picasso, Matisse and Monet, the museum can fill a day. toledomuseum.org

Cincinnati Art Museum This encyclopedic art museum holds more than 65,000 objects spanning 6,000 years. An exhibit on the role of cats in Egyptian mythology, Divine Felines: Cats of Ancient Egypt, opens June 18. cincinnatiartmuseum.org

Cleveland Museum of Art After examining masters like Renoir, Monet, Dalí and Picasso, create your own virtual painting on touchscreens at the Gallery One learning center. clevelandart.org

Kennedy Museum of Art, Athens The Ohio University museum displays Southwestern Native American textiles and jewelry, art that reflects African traditions, and 19th- and 20th-century photographs. ohio.edu/museum

Columbus

The Topiary Park (pictured) Sculpted evergreens re-create the scene from George Seurat's painting A Sunday Afternoon on the Isle of La Grande Jatte. Standing by the bronze easel gives viewers the same perspective as in the painting. topiarypark.org

Ohio State Capitol At the center of this 1861 Greek Revival-style building is a skylight painted with the Ohio seal paid for by schoolchildren. ohiostatehouse.org

Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum The impressive collection of Ohio State-owned materials includes rare and historical comic strips, graphic novels and editorial cartoons. cartoons.osu.edu

Free state parks

Ohio's 74 parks are as diverse as the state's landscape; they're also all free!

One of the best is Hocking Hills State Park, with fascinating sandstone caves and hollows. The park, about 55 miles southeast of Columbus, has hiking, fishing and nature programs as well as a visitors' center. Highlights include 100-foot-high Ash Cave (pictured), Old Man's Cave, Rock House and Cantwell Cliffs. ohiodnr.gov

Also nearby: Conkle's Hollow State Nature Preserve, a spectacular sandstone gorge with cascading waterfalls and 200-foot-high sheer cliffs. ohiodnr.gov

Free in the Lake Erie Shore area

Magee Marsh State Wildlife Area This bird-watching enclave 30 miles east of Toledo has a boardwalk trail (pictured) and migratory bird center. These wetlands were part of a swamp that blocked regional settlement until it was mostly drained in the early 1900s. ohiodnr.gov

Marblehead Lighthouse State Park The oldest active Great Lakes light and keeper's house stands on the tip of the Marblehead Peninsula. You can visit the grounds for free as well as a museum in the keeper's house; a small fee is charged for lighthouse tours. ohiodnr.gov

Maumee Bay State Park Just east of Toledo, this lakeside preserve has a 2-mile boardwalk trail, nature center with interactive displays, two sand beaches, butterfly gazebo and other activities. Maumee Bay Resort is located in the park. ohiodnr.gov

Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge Explore 10 miles of walking trails and migratory bird habitats through wetlands, forest and upland habitats. fws.gov

Aviation in Dayton

National Museum of the U.S. Air Force (pictured) Hundreds of planes and thousands of pieces of Air Force memorabilia cover 17 acres of airplane hangars, making this a must for aviation buffs. Call ahead if you want a spot in one of the Behind the Scenes tours on Fridays. nationalmuseum.af.mil

Wright Cycle Company Complex Rangers and displays answer questions about Dayton's aviation history. Find an overview of the Wright brothers' lives and the quirky Parachute Museum on the second floor. nps.gov/daav

Cuyahoga Valley National Park

Thirty minutes from downtown Cleveland, escape to green oases filled with waterfalls, bike trails, a scenic railroad and the Cleveland Orchestra's summer home. nps.gov/cuva